Nothing More than a Hero
by Mizukara
Summary: Mario 64 Loosely. For 15 years, He was a hero. Always wanting to be more. When the Hero leaves and time passes, who will save those in need? CH. 2 up. Reviews are much loved!
1. Prologue

**Nothing More than a Hero**

**_Disclaimer_:** Mario and his crew of comrades belongs to Nintendo and the groove-tastic 80's, not this writer. I do own, however, any original characters, which were born in the recesses of my mind. Poor widdle critters. . 

Anyway, I'm not sure where this story is going and if it's going any further, but the idea was floating around in my mind ever since I dusted off my old N64 game, and finally removed OoT from the machine. However, nothing ventured, nothing gained, so enjoy!

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In the backroom of the old plumbing shop, a man sat alone. There was a letter unopened on his desk and he watched it with a strange expression; torn between longing and hatred. That small piece of folded paper tore him apart inside, tangling him in a web of indecision. There were only two threads he could grab and neither felt strong; break the waxed seal or leave it be and send back to the pipe it came from. But with this hesitation, he realized that he had finally had enough.

For fifteen years he had traveled between worlds, transforming from plumber to hero. He had fought villains, saved kingdoms and rescued a princess. His princess. Fifteen years ago he was eighteen. Young and green, fresh from the city life, and ready for adventure. It seemed like a sheer accident when he and his brother fell into the pipe that carried them away to the Otherworld. Yet, it had always weighed heavy on his mind. Fifteen years ago, he had rushed head first into danger, without looking back.

And now, fifteen years later, he stopped caring. Because, like any other time, the ending remained the same. He didn't want to be the Savior, nor any other title that was thrown his way. But he knew that's the way he would always be known, all he'd ever be. Nothing more than a hero.

His mind became remarkably clear and he stood up from the old wooden chair. His eyes never drifted back, nor did his step hesitate as he turned his back on the pipe, the letter and ultimately his other life. Without a goodbye, he left the room and never returned to it.

No longer a hero, he was now nothing more than Mario.


	2. Chapter 1: Incoming!

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing but my own creativity, material-mental-magical possessions and my package of half eaten gum. Nintendo's got the rest.

**Author's Rambles**: Wow, it's been a pathetically long time since I updated this… however… dances I got reviews! is pleased Thank you, Ayhua, Pandorapoet, Webcreator, and NiKaChus! Now that I've thought about this thing more, perhaps I can give more info on the story. More than likely the mood is going to bounce around a lot. I noticed the reviews all said that this was a sad tale, which surprised me until I reread it. ; There will be sorrow and then, there will be humour. Basically – This isn't Mario's story. It's going to be told through the eyes of another. I give you this as warning now, for those that… dislike that kind of fic. But I will try at least to make it entertaining. Always wanted to write something like this. So I am. - When I update. Which will vary, as this is an experiment. Also helps if you are familiar with the game, I believe. It's not an exhaustive walkthrough. O.o;

So yes, that's this edition of Mizu's random thoughts. And no Mr. Computer, I did not spell my name wrong.

Enjoy!

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"_Brother…. Brother! Where are you?"_

"_I'm here."_

"_What happened? Where are we?"_

"_I'm not sure. I don't understand."_

"_What do we do? … What can we do?"_

"… _I don't know. I really don't know…."_

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_The old plumbing shop stood before her, every part of it showing the 20 years of abandonment. Through the dust that lined the window frame, and the cobwebs that danced in the glass, the place seemed to cry out in loneliness. Even the bright colours of the awning that hung from over the wide, carved doorway seemed limp and muted from the time that passed. It made her unnerved. The fact that this was going to be her new home, made it even worse._

_Unfortunately, while she saw it as a tomb, her brother saw it as a treasure. He had gone on for hours about the history of shop. How the famous brothers had ran it for years, until the youngest brother just seemed to vanish one day with out a trace. And soon after the older brother left, with no known reason or thought until the people of Brooklyn saw the closed sign on the door. Rumours flew and stories were born, but no one found out what happened to brothers._

_She had frowned when she listened to her brother animatedly retelling the story. Knowing her lucky, the place was probably haunted_. _Soon the ghosts of the brothers that used to live here would come for their souls, as they dared to enter the place that should have never been revived._ _Vengeance would be found in the dust of the pipe works…_

_Little did she realize how right she was. Sort of. _

_But she seriously never truly believed anything would come out of dusting the large pipe that was in the middle of the floor of the old abandoned workroom. Admittedly, it was strange having a green pipe, large enough for a full-grown adult to jump in comfortably, embedded in the linoleum floor. It seemed to have no visible purpose other than collecting dust bunnies the size of their living counterparts. Even the bottom of the pipe, sunken a couple of centrimetres below ground level was odd - solid, but glowing slightly as if backlit by blue lights. _

_As her feet brushes the bottom of the pipe gently and nothing happened, she dropped her full weight onto the faintly shimmering floor and took up her foam sponge and bottle of cleaner, fully intent on making the dusty eye sore a little more visually appealing, or at least clean. Thus, being so absorbed in her work, she obviously failed to notice when the floor of the pipe suddenly dropped out from under her. Mind you, she noticed a brief second after that, as she was now freefalling down a dark abyss, along with her bottle of cleaner, which spun lazily away from her as her arms flailed, desperate to grab something, anything to slow her fall… Her last thought before the overwhelming vertigo claimed her consciousness was absurdly mundane:_

"_I lost my sponge."_

**A reflection:** Sanity, she decided, was one of those tragically underrated commodities. Take her own, for example. While it had taking a little bit of time to wrap her head around the plummet-through-the-rabbit-hole, and not being injured in any way shape or form, she eventually concluded it was possible enough. (Terribly clique as well, she realized much later on.)The second try to her mentality was a little more challenging; after all, going from a dusty workroom to face faulting on a golden-brick-covered-pathway a short jog from an elaborate castle was at most, a little out of the ordinary. However, this too, was deemed possible, her shaken mind concluded, after all, one had to land _some_where. It was the last test she failed to explain, when she was greeted suddenly by Cumulo-nimbus riding critters.

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Groaning quietly, as sunlight stabbed brutally through my shut eyelids, I gritted my teeth painfully, trying to return to some semblance of alertness. I stretched out one arm, tentatively feeling the hard sun baked stone around me, that was drastically different from the dusty and cold tile floor that should have been there instead. I cautiously opened my left eye, only to be greeted by darkness and some grit.

Right. That was the one pressed to the ground.

Opening my right eye, I immediately regretted as, as light lanced into my iris, sending a wave of pain through my muddled head. Colour appeared first, and then details, and then finally some sense of gravity.

Gold brick was spread around me, in an elaborate pathway. At its edge, vibrant jade coloured grass and small trees began, running gracefully over the sloping hills, ending finally in a small, white, sandy beach. Water as blue as the sky, lapped gently against the shore, its heady scent telling me, it was the sea.

I groaned again, flailing mentally at the impossible when voices started to interrupt my own confused thoughts.

"Lai? Lai…!" It squeaked excitedly. "Look, look who it is! I can't believe it… after all these years!" There was a small waft of air, as some err…thing, zoomed around my head.

"Could it be? It is, Kila! He's back! He's really back!"

He? Okay, now that wasn't fair. Admittedly, I wasn't the most fashion orientated person in the world and the old blue work overalls and dusty red cap I borrowed from my brother left a lot to the imagination, but honestly… he?

"We'll have to do this right then, brother. Care to do the honours?" There was an odd rumble, as the speaker cleared its throat.

"Good Afternoon! The Lakita Brothers here, reporting live from outside the Princess's Castle. Mario – "

"Maria." I muttered, absently.

" – Has just arrived on the scene! We'll be filming the action _live_ as he enters the castle pursuing the missing stars and… Hold it, did you say Maria?" The voice demanded.

"Yes?" I ventured. Clearly the target of their attention, I rolled over to greet my news reporters.

"Ni-AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" I screamed in greeting.

Bug-eyed.

Cloud riding.

Turtle shell wearing.

Things.

Not what I was expecting. Hence my reflection on sanity. The fact that both of them had large, outdated video cameras, hanging from fishing rods, somehow attached to the clouds didn't help the situation much. The two …bugs? Hamsters? Things, at any rate, were staring at me with identical expression of confusion.

"You're not Mario. You're not him at all." I shook my head, still wide-eyed and silent. The critter turned to his brother and muttered something under his breath.

"Who?" I finally croaked out, crawling to my feet. "And what…?" I must have looked down right pitiable, because they both glanced over at me, and gave me looks of sympathy.

"Name's Lai." The slightly larger one said, smoothly. "The elder of the Great Lakita Brothers, and this is–"

"Kila, the younger. We're the royal news reporters of the Mushroom Kingdom. Best in the whole land you know. Winner of the Golden Mushroom Broadcasting award, three years running!"

"A very high honour you know."

"Indeed!"

"I'm… Maria." I said weakly, having nothing else to say and I figured it was safe enough.

"So you said before," Kila interjected briefly, "But that doesn't explain who you are. We know you're Maria, which is to say you're not Mario. And that's what we want to know - "

"Where he is, of course."

"It's very important."

"We assume you know. You did get here via Warp Pipe, after all. It's the only way Mario ever traveled."

"Mind you, it was the only way, he _could_ travel…"

"Minor details."

"Very minor!" They both gave me keen looks, hovering a little closer to me, waiting for an answer. Like they were going to get one.

"Look," I said, firmly, trying to keep my voice from shaking. "I don't know who this Mario is. All I know, is that I was in the workroom of our new home, cleaning, and I saw the giant green pipe. I jumped in, nothing happened, and then suddenly I was falling, and then I was here. That's all I know."

"And that's the truth?" Lai asked, gently. "Yes… it would be… So it's true then. Mario did abandon us." There was an air of sorrow underlying the little critters words that unnerved me. Clearly, this Mario fellow was rather important to them, though why, I couldn't tell.

"Kila, you know what that means right?" the older one continued, staring at me.

"I do…" I failed to hear their words, because at that moment I finally turned around to examine my new surroundings.

That's when I saw the palace.

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"So… let me get this straight." I said suddenly, as I made my way through the dusty and abandoned hallways of the enormous castle. "This Bowser guy, is the Mushroom Kingdom's mortal enemy, and up until this point, Mario was your hero?" The larger of the two Lakita brothers nodded, fidgeting with his camera lens as the three of us headed towards our destination.

"Our Hero. The Princess's Champion." Kila added. I nodded.

"Right, the Princess… who right now is trapped within the walls of the palace along with the entire royal court, because of Bowser's evil spell of über doom?"

"Err… I suppose you could put it that way."

"Odd way to put it." Lai piped up.

"Very."

"Then the Stars were taken, yes?" I continued, thoughtfully.

"Yes…It's the magic that controls everything here. From the lighting of the lamps, to sealing the palace from intruders… its very important."

"Hum. Odd way to do things… I really prefer electricity myself." I mused dryly, earning a pair of befuddle looks from my personal camera men, who apparently decided without my permission, to film my entire escapade I got suckered into.

Turns out the whole castle has been cursed for over two decades, when Mario decided not to show up and save them when Bowser took over. Stole the Star Power, sealing groups of them within various areas of the castle preventing anyone from using their power to free themselves…Bowser turned the power against them, and effectively screwed them over, until I showed up.

It was my destiny, I had to save them all, and release the power of the stars back into the hands of the rightful users…. As I was told by a small child that looked like he started to mutate into a mushroom and got stuck halfway. Toad, I think his name was. Which was why I was now traipsing through the palace, searching for one of the only rooms not sealed by the Stars, so I could find them, and then get out of this place. I felt like I just plunged into some sort of badly written fairy tale, with the naïve-young-maiden-thrown-into-misadventure syndrome. I always wondered what that was like. Oh, the irony.

I know I could have just as easily tried to leave and not help them… but that just wasn't right. Especially since I knew how long these people were waiting for someone, almost anyone to help them.

Besides, how many of these Star things could there be?

"Maria, look!" Lai squeaked excitedly, zooming up ahead of me, and up a tiny flight of stairs that lead to a wooden door with a large golden star freshly painted on the front. I knew for sure this was the place, because if the star hadn't tipped me off, the fact that the door was slightly ajar sure confirmed it.

"Finally," I muttered, climbing the stairs with determination. "Let's get this show on the road." The two Lakita brothers let out an excited chirp, and turned on, focused and prepped their cameras before I could mount the last step.

"I agree! Finally! We have precious footage to capture!"

"Very precious!" I groaned in irritation as they zoomed back over to me, already filming and chattering in narration.

"I didn't mean that literally…." I said, and was ignored completely. Sighing, I pushed open the door and stepped into the room, only to be startled by its contents… or almost lack thereof.

The floor was carpeted with a rich wine rug, and walls were white flecked with cream and looked suspiciously like marble. The ceiling, I noted with some amusement, resembled a checkerboard, and aside from a giant painting on the far wall, the room was complete empty. I felt somehow disappointed. I was expecting something a little more elaborate for a place that supposedly was the seal for some of the Stars. In fact… where on earth were they sealed?

"Lai, Kila. Tell me something… what am I suppose to do?" I asked bewildered, stepping cautiously into the room, and on nothing happening, relaxed immediately. The smaller Lakita pulled his attention away from his camera for a brief enough moment to gesture at the giant painting with a toss of his head, before going back to filming a puzzled me. "Right. Of course. Completely obvious." I replied wryly, approaching the painting with a critical eye.

It was…. Rather ugly. Taking up most of the wall, the picture was of nothing more than three bombs, that had faces and legs, on a grassy lawn. Admittedly, the frame was rather nice, but that was pretty much its only redeeming feature.

"Our elegant young heroine has now entered the only room left in the palace _unsealed_ by Bowser's evil spell. Before her, is the famous painting of the Bob-omb Trio, circa 1700, created by Sir Spore of Fungiville, considered to be one of his _most_ famous and beloved pictures." I smothered a snort of amusement, and reached out my hand intending to see if I could shift it at all, since I thought that maybe the seal would be located behind the eyesore.

Much to my surprise, however, my hand didn't stop at the surface of the painting, but instead drifted deep within it. I let out a startled sound and drew my hand back quickly, staring at the pigment that was now covering my hand. I whirled around to stare at Lai, who was hovering over my left shoulder, watching me intensely and then turned back to my hand, still covered in bright paint.

Figuring I had found the way to the seal, I plunged both hands into the painting, recklessly. I gasped in pain as my whole body convulsed, and the world around me began to blur, warp, and seemed to puddle before me.

I shut my eyes, and drifted into nothingness…


	3. Chapter 2: Starlight, Starbright

**Disclaimer:** I own my computer. I own the chair I am sitting in. I do not own Mario and friends, or the world. But I might one day. The world that is. Not Mario. If I did own Mario, then I'd probably do something stupid, like add Chocobos into the games or something. Which I also don't own. My chair, that is. Wait… no. …. You've been disclaimed. Oh, and some references in this story were inspirited by information I collected at Wikipedia, which is the greatest website ever. Just so ya know.

**Author's Rambles**: Annnd, it's chapter two time. Maria's first painting world, with random critters, possessed mushrooms and too much climbing for the average out of shape person. Fun, to be had by all. Well, maybe. .; Anyway, a **huge** shouted thank you, to the reviews I received for Chapter One. I was very surprised and really touched by them, so I wanted to say thanks, because it means a lot!

So yes, enough flapping your, uh, keyboard, Mizu. The people are here to read, not listen to you digress. Fine, fine. ;

Please enjoy!

Chapter Two: Starlight… Star bright… First star, I found sometime this afternoon. 

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"_Brother! This place is amazing…! I've never seen anything like this before…"_

"_I know… nothing back home is like it… it's like a whole new world."_

"_Could it be? I mean… it could, couldn't it?"_

"_Yes… maybe."_

"_Brother, what's wrong? You seem… sad?"_

"_Can't you feel it? I feel… oppression. Like something full of malice is watching over everything around us…"_

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**A reflection**: When one normally encountered a piece of fine art, it is usually studied from a distance, so that all aspects of colour, texture and light blend together into harmony, making the true message whisper to the watcher silently. However, when one encounters a particularly ugly piece of art, conveniently possessed by some sort of evil spell that instead of speaking to you, physically rips your body into a million pieces and then reassembles it, using duct tape, chewing gum, and who-knows-what that was brewing in that Tupperware behind the fridge, one has a slightly less … positive opinion of the item in question. Loathing - was the first emotion that came to her mind. Or it would have, had she not currently been wavering in and out of a state of semi-consciousness for the past ten minutes.

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"Shaken, stunned, and yet _still_ enduring, our noble heroine has finally begun her quest. Her journey to the first of our painting worlds, seems to have halted her progression, _but_, we know this is only temporary."

"Now, Maria! You have just landed smack dab in the middle of the Bob-Omb Battlefield, a place utterly torn by war. All around the air rings with the sound of cannon fire as the most deadly of all weapons is unleashed in the air!"

"Most, most deadly!"

"So now, Fair Maria. What are you going to do now?"

"Puke." I moaned, as I rolled over and opened my eyes to meet the gaze of my cameramen. "And then regroup and come up with a better plan." Lai frowned slightly and looked away from camera to stare at me directly.

"You're feeling unwell?" He asked mildly, a touch of surprise in his voice. "I suppose you are… unused to this kind of travel."

"Would have to be very unused to."

"Indeed." I sighed and pushed myself to my feet slowly, massaging my left temple. "Considering that a) I never faint, and b) have fainted twice within the space of three hours is anything to go by. Yes. Quite." Kila made a fascinated sound.

"Mario told us once that there was no magic in your world at all, save the warp pipe. So that means, you couldn't travel by painting either?"

"Uh…No." I muttered, feeling a grin itching at the corner of my mouth, as I was privately entertained by the idea of the Louvre turning into the equivalent of a subway station. "But that's not the point. The point is, I need to get this little journey underway so I can---

"Uh, Maria… you might want to move."

"Wh----Oh."

**A (very brief) reflection:** Giant water bombs the size of a washing machine, fired with precision accuracy are only entertaining for those _not_ on the receiving end.

"So. Putting the water cannons aside…" I said, gently squeegee-ing the water out of my hair, adding it to the ever increasing puddle on the ground. "This is Bob-Omb Battlefield? It's …different from what I thought." Actually, this was true. I gazed around with the tickling of surprise in the back of my mind; the scenery around me, definitely not earning the name of 'battlefield' (ignoring my 'bath' anyway). Contrasting sharply to the thick concrete platform beneath my feet, the land tumbled away from me changing from grassy flat land to valley walls, their sides exposing blood red rock many spans above me. Connecting several of the gullies together was a series of wooden bridges, lashed together with heavy ropes. I followed one of the bridge paths with my eyes, and noticed it disappeared behind a giant…wall of some sort, possibly made of snow white granite. The canyon and the rock wall however, were dwarfed by the mountain dominating the eastern sky, covered in lazy spiral outcroppings, that likely could be used as a method to reach the summit, almost reaching the sky. But what really caught my eye was the small island, covered in huge trees, whose tops were laced gently with passing white clouds - That hung, of course, suspended in the air hundreds of metres above me.

"That's…" I stopped myself before saying 'impossible'. Technically, nothing I had accomplished today was possible, but this was a whole new realm of improbability. It was also beautiful, and right now, that pleased me more than anything.

"Amazing isn't it?" a voiced asked me, pleasantly. "We never get tried of looking at it."

"Very." I replied, still staring at the island. "It's beautiful."

"Thank you. It's called The Cannon Island. The best view in all the land, save the summit itself, but well, its not like we can enjoy that anymore… but I'm sure you know all about that."

"No I-" I paused and looked down, finally coming to my senses. "- Don't know pink…round…talking ball." The aforementioned ball at my ankles made a mildly offended squeak.

"I, am not a ball, milady! I am a Bob-omb! And I am magenta! Not pink. _Magenta_!" It stared up at me, with a fierce expression on its expressive face that made me turned pale.

"Eep. I, uh, we don't have Bob-ombs were I'm from." I said quickly, less the little walking bomb, (which I finally clued in as what a Bob-omb was…) exploded, quite literally. Kila and Lai, (who were amusing themselves by panning over the land, chattering about local history) noticed my situation and zoomed over, hurriedly interrupting.

"Greetings, noble explosive of the brightest magenta! I see you've met the newest Champion of the Mushroom Kingdom." Kila exclaimed. "I'm very pleased to introduce you to Maria, our Chosen One. Sent by the Great Pipe of Warping, itself!" Apparently, anything one says, can be made into psuedo-formal speech, provided that you switch the order, and shove an 'of' in there. Either way it must have done something since there was silence as the magenta ball's face slowly switched from irritation to excitement to relief.

"Champion? Oh… Oh oh. You came. Someone came. Someone…finally…! By the Bombs, thank you!" It cried with such rings of agony in its voice, I felt a pang of deep compassion in my heart. "We've been waiting for years now, ever since _he_ came here. So many of us have been taken… corrupted, or.. or…" It stopped and looked up at me with a heartbreaking expression. "Maria. Please, I beg of you. We need your help. I don't know how much longer we can survive like this."

I was taken aback as emotions began to waver through me. I understood maybe for the first time, that this place was actually _real, _no matter how often I would muse to myself that this or that was impossible - and there were people that had been waiting for so long, for word of someone, anyone, to come and deliver them from all the evils that were unexpectedly and cruelly thrust upon them. A slight humbling sensation came over me, mixed with abashment, as I realized how close I came to dismissing the importance of my quest entirely, due to my own ignorance. This reality made even worse by the fact that I was likely their only hope.

"Peachy. Just…. Peachy" I muttered to myself, "Not _even_ a day in, and already I have a mind blowing epiphany. Next time, Luis is cleaning that pipe."

Summoning my courage, I looked down at the Bob-Omb with as much gravity as I could muster, trying to make myself more qualified for this role than I knew I was. "I will do everything in my power to help you, and your people." The magenta ball's face lit up, and proceeded to start bouncing from foot to foot in happiness.

"Thank you! Oh, thank you! Then we must go now, right now!" It said, taking off at a fast sprint, towards a large wooden ramp in the distance that lead up to the top of a valley wall.

"Ack, wait!" Completely thrown off by the sudden change in mood, I tore after it as fast as I could. "Hang on a sec, where are we going?" This only made the little bomb run faster, its little footsteps making soft sounds as it began to climb the ramp and disappear to the plateau above us. "Great, at this rate I'll get lost… Kila! Go ahead of us, and find out where it's going. And tell it to slow down!" I begged, taking on the ramp myself.

"Chase scene!" Kila burbled happily, taking off into the sky on his cloud, camera already whirling. I continued my climb, making it to the plateau, and stopped to catch my breath. The bouts of unconsciousness were beginning to catch up to me, it seemed, as my head swam making the world around me blur for a brief moment.

"Exciting, isn't it?" Lai asked me, drifting by lazily as I panted. "Not only are you trying to save the Mushroom Kingdom, but now, you are the champion of the Bob-Ombs!" I gave him a wane smile.

"Remind me to be more excited, after I figure out what I'm suppose to be doing, alright?" I started off again, but stopped suddenly when a blur of movement caught my eye, and I jumped out of the way, before a dirt-coloured mushroom shaped blob crashed into me. "What on earth?" I started, when the blob spun around to face me.

"Gwah!" It growled, baring a pair of rather sharp looking fangs at me, its eyes narrowed wickedly. "Gwa-ah!"

"…Possessed Shitake Mushroom."

"Goomba."

"Oh." The aforementioned goomba, snapped its jaw, hopped twice and charged me again. I let out an undignified squawk, flung myself away, tripped on a rock in the grass and fell flat on my rear. This really was not my day. "Lai…?" I hissed, staring at the growling fungus. "What am I suppose to do?" My cameraman was bemused.

"Fight it. It's just a goomba - one of Bowser's minions. They used to be part of the Mushroom Kingdom, before they became traitors to the crown. But, they're pretty harmless, you know."

"Oh… uh, okay." I forced myself to my feet, and stared down my adversary, who hopped again, preparing for its next charge. Deciding attack first, like a proper heroine should, I ran towards it before it could charge me down and then stopped, realizing I didn't know _how_ to attack it. What was I suppose to do? Flash fry it, and toss it in a stir-fry?

"Gwah." It said – before biting my ankle. So those fangs _were_ sharp. Thought so.

"OW!" I cried, hopping around on one leg, the goomba dangling in air, as it continue to gnaw deep into the bone. "Lai! I thought you said these were harmless! You stupid little… Get. Off. Me!" I kick my leg as hard as I could, and was surprised when the goomba lost its grip and went flying in the air. It landed some metres away from me with a soft (and wickedly satisfying) thud – and then exploded into smoke.

"……"

"Relatively harmless, anyway." Lai amended, as I snorted, and then bent down, rubbing at my ankle. There was a tiny amount of blood weeping from the bite marks, which I brushed off, and onto the hem of my overalls. Superficial, at least. But that's what they say about paper cuts.

"It…" I began, and shook my head, straightening up. "Never mind. C'mon Lai, I need to find our friend before he gets even further from here."

"Looking for this?" Kila's voice sang down from the sky merrily, as he zoomed towards us, the magenta bomb dangling from the camera wire, in panic.

"Lemme go, lemme go, lemme go!" It pleaded, obviously scared out of its wits. I reached up, and plucked it off the wire, before holding up to my eyes.

"Chill out for a moment, alright? If you want me to help you, don't go sprinting off like a firecracker." The Bob-Omb stopped flailing.

"Okay." I set it down, and then glanced over to Kila. "Thanks." The critter grinned widely, probably having just finished filming a dramatic aerial scene.

"Don't mention it." I looked down at the Bob-Omb again.

"First things first. Do you have a name?"

"Obviously. I am Ferrum Ore. But please, call me Ore."

"Pleased to meet you, Ore." I said courteously, "Now. Tell me what's happening here…."

………………………………………………………………

_I'll never forget that day. The day the earth shook beneath us, the day the sky burned, and ripped open. Out from the Gate came hundreds of minions sworn to the one you call Bowser. Each one burning with the Power of the Stars, they threatened to overwhelm us, even though we tried our best to fight back. Just when we thought that we might be able to force them back to the Gate where hence they came… he came._

_The Big Bob-Omb, we called him. He towered over us all, shining in the burning light with malevolence. At first we thought him ally against the army, but too soon did we find out he was shaped to rule over us. For those that couldn't escape, or those that weren't extinguished in the fight… they were taken, and they were… changed. Full of spite, and now loyal to Bowser, they began to hunt down the rest of us, to which they still do today. Twenty years later, our land only seems peaceful because there's barely anyone left to revolt again them. The Big Bob-Omb now rules over everything. And until he is thrown down, we will never be free._

………………………………………………………………

This was the story I was told by Ore - which helped to explain why I was now walking with acid burning in my calves, up to the summit of a never-ending mountain. This was of course, after I took on the valley-of-the-many ramps, followed by the tor-of-steep-inclines. This was shortly before I took on the field-full-of-rabid-goombas. Not to forget the rather-large-hill-to-walk-down-which-someone-filled-it-with-giant-rolling-balls-of-rock-out-to-smush-me. Not that I was bitter. No way.

"Why couldn't I have been sent here with a… horse or something, instead of my bottle of cleaner?" I whined to no one in particular, seeing as my cameramen had decided to film a mini-featurette of the Valiant Ore farther down the road, close to where it turned the corner of the mountain, (which I now realized, was a giant hexagon). "It's not like that is going to be any use to me. Unless I encounter some sort of mutant dust bunny…" I paused in my rant, to strike a pose, with the large tree branch I had been carrying as my Goomba Smusher version 2.0. "Fear my Vim-jitsu, and my awesome Bathroom Sponge of Justice."

"Vim-jitsu? Is that your secret attack, Maria?" Kila interrupted excitedly, circling around me having finished filming.

"Oh yes!" I replied cheekily, "It's an ancient technique passed down by my family for generations. If you're lucky, one day I might show it to you." Kila made an awestruck noise, making me snicker in my own head. I would, at least, the day I learn to walk through walls.

I continued along the path, but then stopped suddenly as the ground began to rumble beneath my feet. My muscles tensed as Ore, who was still farther up the road, let out a cry of panic and bolted towards us.

"Run Maria! Ruuuuuuuun…!"

"Run? What? Why…. Oh noes." I stated, as my second encounter with the giant boulders of rock came to pass. It came roaring down the road, crushing anything in its path, and just when I thought it might fling itself off the mountain at the corner, it changed direction and headed towards me.

"Waaaaaaa!" I yelped, spinning around, and bent over quickly to grab the little magenta bomb, before hightailing it back down the mountain. "Run away, run away….!" For a brief second, I thought I could out run it. After all, I was farther down the road… and I had enough adrenaline rushing through me, to fill buckets. Plus the chosen hero of the land couldn't be taken down by a measly rock, right?

"It's gaining on us, Maria!" Ore cried, the wick on the top of its head suddenly bursting into flame in its panic.

"Ore, calm down!" I pleaded, suddenly envisioning my end by being blow to pieces rather than by speeding boulder. "I'm running as fast as I can…" The path suddenly ended before me, turning around the corner and I grabbed the rock wall, forcing myself to turn, my feet sliding in the dirt as I fought to keep running. My legs, already burning from the climb threatened to catch fire like my magenta comrade's head, and of course the rock behind me was showing none of the same mortal weaknesses.

"Maria! Quick, in here!" Lai's voice suddenly called from right, as he zoomed inside an indent in the mountain wall that looked just large enough for me to crouch in along with the others - and more importantly too small for the rock to touch us. I sharply changed direction, flinging myself into the rock hole, just as the rock roared pass, close enough that I almost felt it graze my leg. Exhaling sharply, I slumped down and banged my head lightly against the wall. My heart was racing, as fear slowly, slowly ebbed out of me.

"That was ridiculous." I said slowly, reveling in the fact I was still alive and not a two-dimensional pancake. The little flame atop Ore's head sputtered and died out.

"Thank you, Maria." It murmured.

"Don't mention it. Lai, you okay?" There was a familiar excited chirp I was beginning to recognize, and my mouth crooked into a half smile despite myself. "I'm going to assume Kila is fine?"

"Can I truly be 'fine when I was unable to film such an event?" I heard him call mournfully from outside. "Such a chase and I failed to capture it…" This time I smiled fully, and shook my head. "But I know there will be more because…. Because… Oh dear-" Kila trailed off suddenly, and I heard a soft 'thunk' from outside.

"…Kila?" I said softly, poking my head carefully outside the hole.

Only, to be greeted with the scene of a mob of Bob-Ombs surrounding an injured Kila, who had been ripped off his cloud and beaten to the ground, his camera thrown carelessly aside. Lai let out a panicked cry and zoomed towards his brother, but I grabbed onto his shell and pulled him back, just as the eyes of the mob glimmered with viciousness. I left the hole completely and drew up to my full height, trying to seem impressive and foreboding despite the fact I was horribly out numbered, and more than a little afraid. I knew instantly we had run into the Corrupted Ones, that Ore had spoke of earlier, if not because of their actions, but their very appearances. Their normally happy and bright magenta colour was harshly interrupted by streaks of chrome and rust all over their bodies, and the little braids of their wicks were fraying.

"Ore," I muttered as softly as I could, to the little magenta bomb that was still hidden in the shadows. "Stay there." Unfortunately, I was still overheard. In a moment, one of the bombs gave a sharp trill and they swarmed around us faster than I could react. A handful stayed to guard the fallen Kila, and a handful more invaded our hiding spot, only to drag out Ore who was kicking and flailing with all of its strength.

"Brothers…" It whimpered. "Please… why are you doing this?" There was a round of derisive laughter as they nudged him towards where I was standing, still holding onto a struggling Lai.

"You know why, Brother Ferrum." One of them said, coming forward away from the mass. This Bob-Omb was obviously very far gone, as there was barely any pink left on its body. "As we have told you _many_ times before. But now it not the time for chatter, _dear_ brother. The King wishes to speak with you… an appointment that has been far too long overdue." At these words, Ore let out a squeal and tried desperately to escape, only to be brutally attacked by its former brothers. I took this moment to hop into the air, and tried to leap over the Bob-Ombs in an attempt to save Ore. I stopped however, the moment I was surrounded by a sea of burning wicks.

"Move, human, and we will have no qualms of blowing you all to pieces."

"Even at the cost of your own lives?" I retorted caustically, before bending over Lai as I murmured to him.

"Yes." The bomb stated simply. "Now come, human. Be thankful you too will get to meet such a great king as our brother here." I let out a snort, and then quickly released my hold on Lai, who shot in the air like a rocket and straight through the mob of Bob-Ombs, pausing only to grab Kila and his cloud before taking off again, into the sky. I gave the Bob-Omb a nasty little grin, and held out my arms and gave a mocking little shrug.

"Oopsie."

"You are braver than you look human, I will allow you that. You are just lucky you are the one we are interested in, not them, Now, move." The bomb commanded, and the tide of walking explosives surged onward in a single wave, leaving Ore and I with no choice but to follow.

"Well, Ore. We were going to go find the King weren't we?" I mentioned casually, as he moved to hang close to my side, trembling. "Really, we're just speeding up the process." Ore stared up at me bleakly.

"Easy for you to say, Maria. You're not approaching the fate of utter servitude…."

The remaining journey to the summit of the mountain (Fortunately? Unfortunately?) wasn't long, as it at the time of our capture, we were well over three quarters of the way there. And I was bloody glad of it too - I was tired of walking. Much to my surprise the summit itself was nothing special at all; a flat grassy, (albeit hexagon) plateau with no redeeming features save the marvelous view over the whole land, which I suddenly realized was just a really big island. My momentary admiration for the landscape was halted however, the moment I was shoved rudely to the ground, in an undignified heap, in front a very, very, very large chrome ball. With legs. And arms. And eyes. And a sparkly golden crown on top.

Well, shoot.

So, what was I thinking when I decided I was going to battle against the Big Bob-Omb? Apparently the wrong thing, as I clearly had underestimated the size of my adversary. By a lot. Precisely, how much TNT could be stored in a bomb that could eat me for breakfast? Answer: A lot.

"So. You must be the one they call the Big Bob-Omb." I said smoothly, scrambling to my feet in an attempt to restore my dignity as a hero, trying to hide the fact I was shivering. The King stared down at me silently for a moment, before replying in a deep rumbling voice that shook the earth beneath me.

"I am, human." he replied in amusement. "I am the Big Bob-Omb, Lord of all Blasting Matter, King of Kabooms, the World done over." The pride in his voice, clearly reached his minions, who were now standing around us in a circle, as they let out a war cry. "Now, before I kill you, by what right do you set foot on my imperial mountain top? What gives you the right to scale my mountain?" I exhaled sharply and rolled my eyes.

"Your minions were the ones that dragged me up here, your kingship. But having said that, had I not been invited I would have come anyway." I said sharply, crossing my arms. "Therefore I will thank you for giving me such a dramatic guard of honour." The king's eyes narrowed and watched me, seeming mildly thrown off by the fact I wasn't scared of his presence.

And people told me, taking drama was a waste of a credit.

"Who are you, human? Answer me now, and truthfully, or I will have my armies throw you off the mountain." My adversary demanded, stomping his foot on the ground making the soil shake. Playing my role to the fullest, I stood straight and stared him straight in the eyes.

"_I_," I stated grandly. "Am Maria. Champion of the Bob-Ombs, Sworn Savouir of the Mushroom Kingdom. King Bob-Omb, I demand you stand down from your stolen rank, or I will make your regret this day. For the fate of this world, the safety of my friend Ore and his people, and for the fate of the Stars, Bowser hid in this land, I command you to _stand down_!" My words seemed to echo over the grassy plateau, as I waited for the King's reaction…

And he laughed.

Hard.

Which started the whole court of Bob-Ombs around us laughing. Just as hard.

Well, that didn't work quite as well as I had planned it.

…. Or at all.

"You…!" The King finally said, through his laughter. "You, are the Champion of the Mushroom Kingdom? You, a mere child, are suppose to be the one that brought down the Great Koopa King, time and time again? No wonder he asked for help from the Great Lord of Booms!" He laughed again, this time making a strange

_bomu-bomu_ sound. "Or are you just a pathetic substitute, found by Ferrum, as a last hope since a _real_ hero could not be found? Yes, that seems desperate enough!" I growled under my breath, unable to find a scathing enough comeback.

"Now then, speaking of our little friend… Bring forth the little rebel, so that I may deal with him once and for all." There was movement behind me, as Ore was kicked, shoved and dragged forward as was done to me, and then thrown to the feet of the king, who stood over him maliciously.

"Ferrum Ore… we meet at last. The self-proclaimed leader of the pathetic little group that thinks they can overthrow me and 'obtain peace', isn't it? Ahh, that will make me enjoy making you work for me, so much more!" He gave another rumbling _bomu-bomu_.

"Any last free words, Ferrum? Like the location of your little hideout of rebels? I'll find out in a minute of course, but just think of it as a little gift to your new king!" Ore started up at the king, bravely.

"Never! _Never_, you imposter! I will not bend to you!" It cried, stomping its feet, setting the wick on his head ablaze. I realized in that moment, Ore was ready to blow itself up, rather than become like the others. The flame grew brighter, and he began to vibrate slightly.

"No! Ore, stop it!" I pleaded. "We'll get out of this somehow!" Ore only laughed sadly, and the fire burned white hot.

"This is the only way out for me, Maria. I won't betray the others, or let them use me." He spun and glared at the king who had an expression of surprise on his face, clearly thrown off by Ore's last minute vigor. "Ever!"

I suddenly dove at the little bomb, as it began to flash red, and I reached out my hand to grip the burning wick, desperate to put it out. I let out a cry of agony as the fire seared at my skin, but I held on, determined to stop Ore at all costs. Stupid, stupid, _stupid_. My first act as hero was NOT going to be letting Ore die. At my cry of pain, Ore started, and the fire burned out immediately, but I refused to let go.

"You try that again Ore, and I will rip your wick out of your head." I hissed in pain, my hand trembling with the effort not to let go. "Understand me?" Ore stared down at the ground, meekly. "Well?" I demanded, tightening my grip on the fibers.

"I'm sorry, Maria…" It said finally. "I just…" I released my hold, and spun around to glare hatefully at the king. "Bomb King, whether you think me a hero or not, I demand you answer my challenge. And I when I win, this world will be released from your control, and Ore's people freed, got it?"

"Fine. I accept your challenge." The King said coolly, "But when I am crowned victor, your fate will be the _same_ as Ferrum's and you will be left with just enough of your memories so you can remember how you failed everyone!"

And he lunged.

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**A reflection: **How can one possibly describe a battle for one's life if the listener has never experienced the same thing? It's impossible really, when you think about it. The fear that seeps into all places in your mind that robs your mouth of all moisture, and causes your body to shake…

She knew she was in over her head, the moment the challenge came from her mouth. She knew that there was no way she could defeat a giant, walking talking bomb. But she went ahead and challenged him anyway, because it was the right thing to do. Oh, was she ever going to pay for that.

………………………………………………………………

The Big Bob-Omb lunged towards me in a thundering stampede, ground quaking with every step, scattering his loyal minions around him into the air. I panicked and my instincts screamed, telling me to move. I flung myself to the side, narrowly missing being crushed, and landed on all fours, favouring my burnt hand. I regained my wits just fast enough to do it again, as the king skidded to a stop, and stomped in rage coming after me again.

"Foolish Child!" He roared, running me down again and again. "How dare you believe you can take on the Great King of Bob-Ombs?" I didn't reply, since I was using all of my strength to evade his attacks. Fortunately for me, enough of common physics were still in effect in this place, letting my slight mass move just a fraction faster than the enraged explosive.

Not like I could do anything but run at this point.

Another charge, another dodge. The dance repeated itself over and over again, until I was bent over, panting, face red and sweating. This was the opening the king clearly had been waiting for, as he lunged once more and my pitiful attempt to move away failed. I was swept into the air in the king's massive arms, and held high over the ground.

"Maria!" I heard Ore cry, from the edges of the plateau where he and the other Bob-Ombs were wisely staying out of the way. "No, Maria!" The king gave a wicked laugh and threw me into the air, as hard as he could. The wind rushed over my face as I arced through the heavens, given a temporary view of the whole island below me, before landing hard on the ground, bones and organs shuddering with the impact. Dazed with pain, I couldn't hope to move, as drawing air into my lungs was even difficult right now. Helplessly sprawled on my back, I didn't even have the strength to flinch as the Bomb King stood over me and placed one giant foot on my chest, before pressing down. Ribs creaked, and sinew groaned, as I struggled to move, or speak or doing anything but be slowly crushed to death. Unfortunately, I couldn't do a single thing to save myself. As my consciousness was beginning to leave me, likely for good, I noticed a large dark shadow approaching us, racing through the air and then colliding with the Great Bomb King. As the crushing weight left my chest, a large splash of water rushed over me, ricocheting off the body of the king.

Wait…. Water?

This wave of water, was followed by another and then another, as huge bombs of water came screaming up the mountain side, each one colliding with the king. Of course… the Water Bomb Cannons. I was hit with enough of them that I should I have remembered their 'little' drenching effects. But how on earth…?

My hazy thoughts were interrupted by a chirping war cry, as the elder of the Great Lakita Brothers arrived on the scene, accompanied by a new wave of water bombs.

"Never fear, Fair Maria! The Great Lai Lakita is heeeeere!" The little critter rocketed towards me, and reached out with his little arms to haul me into a sitting position, as carefully as he could.

"Lai….?" I whispered, gasping for air. "What's…?" Lai gave me a huge grin, despite the fact there was concern in his eyes. "This little show, is brought to you by The Great Younger Lakita Brother, who decided that hijacking a water cannon was the way to go." I gave him a weak grin.

'Thanks." The critter nodded and struggled to help me to my feet, regardless of the fact my weight was dragging down the cloud.

'You've got to do something, Maria. The water bombs aren't going to last forever." As he said this, I began to notice the volleys of fire were becoming less and less frequent, and the Bomb King was beginning recover from this interruption. Which put me in a terrible state, needless to say. He was no weaker than before, and likely even stronger in his rage, and I was almost at my end having done nothing.

A faint glimmer of an idea suddenly bloomed in my head, which seemed dumb enough that it might work…I pushed off of Lai's cloud, forcing myself to stand on my own feet, and limped over to the edge of the plateau, until I could feel the updrafts off the mountain whipping around my hair. I waited for the moment the water bombs finally ceased and inhaled and bellowed at the top of my lungs.

"Hey, Bob-Omb King! I'm over here, you… jerk!" Having uttered the lamest taunt ever in existence, which still ironically had the effect I wanted, I prepared myself as the King roared in rage and stampeded towards me. Begging to whatever powers controlled this land to let this work, I waited until the last possible moment before dropping neatly off the edge a brief moment before the king did… only to land in a delicate heap on the path that was a mere two meters below me. Big Bob-Omb, on the other hand, had way too much momentum to enjoy the same luxury…. And ran out into empty air, that is, before gravity took over.

The concerned faces of the my personal camera man peered down over the edge, and with an excited chirp, raced down to drag me back up the mountainside, dropping me gently onto the grass as a massive explosion ripped through air, shaking the mountain as a column of smoke drifted up from the ground, very far below.

"Waha!" Kila cried, flying around in circles. "That was remarkable, Maria! A most spectacular ending!"

"Most, most spectacular!" Lai echoed, happily as he mimicked his brother. I weakly reached out and brushed them affectionately as they circled around me, before I was promptly tackled by Ore, who proceeded to burst into tears.

"Oh, Maria, thank you, thank you, thank you! We're free! Finally free!" He buried his face into my side, and I winced, but rested my good hand on Ore's wick gently.

"You're welcome… but what about the others?" I asked, glancing upwards as the mob of Bob-Ombs approached us. But my question was answered in a minute, as I got a good look at their faces. Gone were the hateful, malicious expressions, which were instead replaced by peaceful ones, each one tinged with pure joy. Even the rust and chrome streaks were beginning to fade and flake away from their bodies, revealing a fresh magenta sheen underneath. I breathed a sigh of relief.

One of the now free Bob-Ombs removed itself from the crowd and hesitantly came forwards to stand before me, and bowed.

"By the Bombs, thank you Maria." It whispered humbly, and I realized it was the Bob-Omb spokes-bomb from earlier. "We are free, and are forever in your debt. Can you find it in your heart… to maybe…. one day forgive us for all that we've done, to you and to our brothers?" I titled my head in surprise.

"Consider yourselves forgiven." I replied quickly. "I won't pass judgment for travails that began so long ago, and I know so little about!" The bomb beamed at me. "But, I would like to know… what is your name?" The bomb smiled and gave another quick little bow.

"I am Aurum Alloy."

"Then, Aurum, I'm enlisting you to help restore this land to your people. Take down the tools of war, and restore this land to peace, understand?" Aurum nodded gravely.

"I do, and I promise. No matter how long it takes."

"Good." I turned to Lai, Kila, and Ore and began to speak again when I noticed a glitter of light appear in the corner of my eye.

In the centre of the plateau, the former station of the Bomb King, a fountain of light suddenly burst from the ground, showering us all with silver light. At first, there was nothing else to see, but then the stream of light began to twist and condense, until a large glowing star appeared, hovering delicately over the ground.

"Is that….?" I whispered. Ore nodded.

"That's the Star, Bowser gave the Big Bob-Omb all those years ago. It's finally free from his hold. You are its rightful owner now, Maria." I watched it silently for a moment, suddenly aware of the great… presence emitting from it. Before now, the only experience I had with magic was really in passing. A quick travel spell here, a talking bomb there, but never in a form I could feel before in sense other than the physical five. I struggled to my feet and limped towards it, hand out stretched, hesitating.

This was the turning point. One touch, and I couldn't go back. One touch and I was committed to this job to the bitter end, no matter the cost to myself. If I took this star, here and now, I was their hero until the end of my days. I stared into the shining surface, as if expecting the Star to judge me, accuse me of being a child playing a game of pretend… but it didn't. All it did was hover there, as it had before, letting me make by own choice. I glanced down at my throbbing hand, to the burnt and blistered skin, and studied the wound I bore of my own choosing to save a friend. Hesitation gone, I thrust my hand forward and I touched the Star.

Before the world around me dissolved completely into light, melting away my aches and pains, singing in harmony with the cheers of my friends around me, I relished in the simple thought, that for once, I wasn't just a child. I wasn't a stranger, nor unwanted. In this brief moment, regardless of how long it lasted, I knew who I was:

Nothing more than a Hero.


End file.
